Dimitri's Heart
by cyndaquilka
Summary: Byleth is intrigued by the parts of Dimitri's physiology that are different than her own.


The door to Byleth's room shot open.

"I'm so sorry," said the woman guiltily, as she stormed inside and rushed to her cabinet.

"Please stop apologizing, Professor," said Dimitri, following her inside. He was pressing a towel to his shoulder, which was stained with blood. "I'm fine, truly."

After she collected all the necessary materials, she threw them at the bed. Among them, the prince recognized a vulnerary, a bandage, and a dressing. Byleth pointed at the remaining free space.

"Have a seat."

When her invitation didn't have the desired effect, the professor put a hand on her student's healthy arm and forced him to sit down. She took a seat next to him and opened the sanitizer. Dimitri's eyes widened.

"Forgive me, but I don't think this will be necessary," he said, as he moved away.

But Byleth's expression was firm.

"You said the wound is shallow and we don't have to get you to the infirmary. I agree, but we can't leave it as it is, or it might get infected."

Unable to find reasonable counterarguments, the man looked away. He didn't seem happy with the way his situation developed.

"Now, if you could unbutton your shirt…"

Dimitri obeyed without further complaints. He moved his clothes and the towel away, so that his wound would be fully visible. The blood seeped from its edges, but other than that the cut looked relatively clean. Still, the professor didn't want to take any chances, so she poured a good amount of sanitizer all over it. Dimitri winced and hissed, his eyes shut.

"Sorry, but I'm almost done," stated Byleth, as she wiped the excess that dripped down the man's chest. Then, she delicately traced the skin around the slash left by her own sword. She felt his muscles tremble under her touch.

"I thought," the professor went on, pressing a clean dressing against his shoulder, "that you would be used to having your wounds treated by now."

She was awarded with a short snort.

"I am used to getting hurt," replied Dimitri, taking a quick glance at what she was doing, "not to those stingy liquids that you pour onto my flesh."

He notices a hint of worry that appeared on his teacher's face. Her gaze landed upon an old scar that went from under the dressing and across his collarbone. It was crossed by another one, much thinner and smoother.

Absentmindedly, Byleth traced it with her fingers. Next, she came across two small puncture scars, probably left by spears or arrows that thankfully hit the ribs. A little lower, there were old marks that resembled a bite. Tears appeared in her eyes on the thought of all the pain endured by the man sitting next to her.

Suddenly, something else caught her attention. She pressed her entire palm against Dimitri's chest.

And there it was. A strong, rhythmical pounding against his ribcage.

A beating heart.

Mesmerized, the woman focused her entire attention on the feeling in her hand. She'd always been fascinated by the idea of an internal organ that was constantly pumping blood. The only heart she'd ever heard beating was her late father's. She wondered if all the hearts beat the same.

Byleth raised her head to meet the eyes of Dimitri, who silently watched her every move. Nerves nearly took the better of her. But this was too important.

"Do you mind if I check something?" she nearly whispered. Dimitri shook his head.

Leaning forward, the professor replaced her hand with her ear. She could hear clear, powerful thuds deep in her student's chest. From what she remembered, her father's heart was beating noticeably slower. She briefly wondered why.

Right before she became painfully aware that she's pushing her head against Dimitri's bare chest.

Byleth leapt back, as though she was scalded. She could feel her own pulse quicken.

"What were you doing?" the prince asked, more intrigued than embarrassed. "Checking if my heart still beats after I heartlessly slaughtered countless people? That's cruel of you."

Dimitri's words baffled her. It took the woman several seconds to recover.

"No," she replied, licking her dry lips. "All I wanted was to feel a heartbeat again. I apologize if I took advantage of you."

The man furrowed his brows, puzzled.

"Can't you feel your own?" he asked.

Byleth looked down. She shook her head.

"I have no heartbeat."

An irritated laugh escaped Dimitri's mouth.

"Only because people used to call you heartless, doesn't mean− Huh?!"

His words were cut off when Byleth took his hand into hers and pressed it against her own chest. She could feel the man's muscles tense, but he didn't move.

"My father told me I was born like this. The blood flows through my veins, and yet this isn't my heart's doing. Hanneman suspects that I have this… impairment because of my crest. I think I believe him."

As she spoke, Dimitri's expression changed from incredulity to pure shock. He shifted his palm, desperate to catch even a single thump of the woman's heart. However, the more he tried, the more reasons he had to admit the impossible.

There was no heartbeat.

All of a sudden, he felt very sorry for his teacher. For her entire life, she had been deprived of something that everyone else had. A thing so basic that nobody would ever assume she lacked. She did not remember ever having a beating heart, and yet she missed it. He saw she did, and she practically told him as much. This was so unspeakably sad for him that he wanted to cry in her stead.

Before he could do anything about it, he heard a voice.

"Professor, are you there? The meeting's already started."

Both of their heads shot to the door. Dimitri recoiled, having realized that he was practically squeezing his professor's breast the entire time. Byleth could feel herself panic, as though she was caught doing something improper. She took a steadying breath before she answered.

"I−I'll be right there, Annette. Just a moment."

Annette's steps sounded against the floor outside. The professor wondered how she didn't hear her approaching. Did the girl even knock before she spoke?

"We'd better hurry and patch you up," said Byleth, as she reached for a bandage that laid forgotten on the side. "They're probably looking for you, as well."

"Right," agreed Dimitri, covering his nervousness with a cough. "We'll finish this talk later."

The silence was heavy to his ears. The man suspected he was let in on a secret that was known to very few. This day, he felt very close to the professor, both physically and mentally. He didn't want this to go away.

"Erm, Professor?" Dimitri waited until he caught her eye before he continued. "I didn't mean to sound ungrateful. Earlier, I mean. I want you to know that I appreciate everything you do for me."

Dimitri meant more than today's evening, and Byleth knew that perfectly well. Yet, she chose to ignore it.

"That's the least I could do," she replied, indicating his freshly-bandaged shoulder. "Next time we should definitely not use relics to spar."


End file.
